STAR TREK: DISCOVERY Adds Doug Jones and Anthony Rapp

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The Final Frontier’s newest mission is starting to pack in the stars. Star Trek: Discovery has been one of the most anticipated television projects since its announcement, and will be the flagship program for CBS’ All Access streaming subscription service. There’s been a fair amount of news surrounding the show, including the departure of creator/original showrunner Bryan Fuller, and the casting of Michelle Yeoh as a Starfleet captain (but not the female lead). Now, two more actors are joining the show’s cast: Hellboy and Pan’s Labyrinth co-star Doug Jones, and Rent and Dazed and Confused co-star Anthony Rapp, and has confirmed Yeoh’s casting.

Jones has been cast as Lt. Saru, a Starfleet Science Officer and a new alien species to the Star Trek universe, surely in the Spock or Data mold; Rapp will be playing Lt. Stamets, an astromycologist, fungus expert, and Starfleet Science Officer aboard the Starship Discovery. It’s also being reported that Lt. Stamets will be the first gay character on a Star Trek show, a character that Fuller was keen to add to the universe. And finally, Yeoh has been officially cast as Captain Georgiou, the Starfleet Captain aboard the Starship Shenzhou. So, as much as we might have wanted Yeoh to be playing the main captain on the show, she’s captaining another vessel.

All three of these choices speak to CBS’ desire to get formidable acting for its first streaming-only series. Jones is a masterful actor, and has clearly been the go-to for characters created through makeup and physical performance. His turn as Abe Sapien in Hellboy, I’d imagine, was a big factor, given Abe’s erudite scientific mind. Rapp is another interesting and rich choice, being predominantly known as a stage actor (Rent) and entertainer along with his film credits. And, well, Yeoh is just a prime choice to lead any ship.

This all brings up the question: who on Earth (or elsewhere) will be starring on this thing? If they’ve gotten the caliber of actor for three supporting characters, who’s going to be the show’s female lead, and who is going to be the captain of the Discovery? We want to know! And surely we’ll find out sooner rather than later, since Star Trek: Discovery is supposed to be making its debut in May 2017.

What do you think? Who should play the rest of the cast? Let us know in the comments below!